Suchergebnisse

Aujourd'hui encore, les infrastructures électriques en Afrique sont inefficaces, peu fiables et inéquitablement réparties – une réalité qui explique les déclarations théoriques appelant à d'indispensables réformes. Mais il est difficile de dire si ces nouveaux discours intègrent ou non l'histoire en dents de scie des réformes du secteur de l'électricité du continent. Cet article éclaire les trajectoires actuelles de développement en tirant les enseignements des réformes menées dans les années 1990 et 2000 au Ghana et en Tanzanie. L'auteur analyse l'influence de la réforme du secteur de l'électricité sur les processus économiques engagés dans ces deux pays, ainsi que leurs limites. Il examine les rapports de force en termes de pouvoir, de savoir et d'appropriation entre la Banque mondiale, qui a financé et promu les réformes, les gouvernements bénéficiaires, qui les ont mises en œuvre, et les entreprises publiques concernées, souvent rétives à leur introduction.

In a bid to make renewable energy technology deployment strategies politically acceptable, many countries are linking them to socio-economic goals, such as job creation, economic development and building competitiveness. A controversial industrial policy tool that is becoming increasingly popular is the use of local content requirements (LCRs). These regulate the extent to which certain projects must use local products and are often justified on the basis of supporting local employment and private sector development. The debate has centred around the rights and wrongs of protecting infant industry, with little progress being made to find a common ground. This paper seeks to move beyond this stalemate to understand under which conditions LCRs might be a legitimate and effective tool for promoting local manufacturing. To do so, it applies an effectiveness framework to LCRs for solar photovoltaics in India's National Solar Mission. The paper finds that for LCRs to be effective, they must be (a) limited in duration and incorporate planned evaluation phases, (b) focused on technologies and components for which technical expertise is available and global market entry barriers are manageable, (c) linked to additional mechanisms, such as training and promotion of business linkages and measures to support other stages of the value chain and wider services that are integral to success of renewable energy industries.

Despite much progress in expanding energy systems in developing countries, an estimated 1.3 billion people do not have access to electricity, and around 2.8 billion people do not have access to clean cooking facilities. Instead, they rely on traditional fuels – predominately animal dung, crop residues and wood – for the majority of their energy needs. In order to tackle this problem, a key pillar of the United Nations Sustainable Energy for All (SE4ALL) initiative is to ensure universal access to modern energy services by 2030. The SE4ALL initiative provides an opportunity to build consensus on what constitutes energy access and how it can help bring people out of poverty. But if it is to succeed where others have failed, it needs to do things differently. Firstly, the initiative must move beyond viewing energy access as simply providing a grid connection. This narrow understanding ignores the complexity of energy access and fails to appreciate alternative approaches that may be more appropriate. For instance, energy is needed for multiple uses, e.g. heating, lighting, cooking, entertainment and productive activities. These uses require different forms and amounts of energy, which are determined on the basis of the specific needs and demands of individuals and communities, as well as their impacts on other resources and activities. Furthermore, access to modern energy services means more than simply availability of supply. Affordability, quantity, quality and sustainability are vital elements in determining the extent of energy access. Secondly, the SE4ALL initiative must consider the wider context and constraints within which energy access initiatives are pursued. Energy access is not an end in itself: rather, it offers the means to meet basic needs and improve livelihoods. For this to happen, diffusion of energy technologies and services must adequately deal with deeper barriers related to technologies; infrastructures (e.g. local manufacturing, installation and maintenance capabilities); markets;government policies and regulation; user practices; social norms; and cultural meaning.